Lagos is not merely governed—it is engineered and meticulously organised. A megacity of over 25 million people, the economic heartbeat of Nigeria, and arguably the most strategic sub- national political ecosystem in Africa.
As 2027 approaches, a familiar but profound question echoes across corridors of influence—from Alausa to Marina, from the five Ibile Divisions to the 57 LGs and LCDAs, down to wards and grassroots structures: Who wears the crown?
Yet Lagos does not answer loudly. It whispers. “Elections may be public, but power in Lagos is negotiated in private and through caucuses—long before ballots are cast.”
Before the consolidation of today’s political order, Lagos politics was shaped by structured caucuses that defined leadership selection. At the elite level stood the Primrose Group, a discreet but powerful screening body that assessed aspirants in the early 90s and late 1990s. It played a critical role in screening Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the Senate against political heavyweight Odu Onikosi, in what many described as a David-versus-Goliath contest. Tinubu emerged victorious.
Primrose also screened the 1998 governorship aspirants:
Bola Ahmed Tinubu
Wahab Dosunmu
Funsho Williams
The Primrose circle included:
Prince Tajudeen Olusi
Bushura Alebiosu
Mofutau Olatunji Hamzat
Alhaji Kola Oseni
Dapo Sarumi
Oyinlomo Danmole (the youngest member).
Notably, Mofutau Olatunji Hamzat, father of Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, chaired the screening process that produced Tinubu as the 1998 AD governorship candidate.
Alongside Primrose emerged two other critical blocs: Mandate Group — the grassroots mobilisation engine and Justice Forum — the stabilising and conflict-resolution bloc.
Together, they formed a strategic architecture:
Primrose — elite validation
Mandate Group — mass mobilisation
Justice Forum — internal balance and cohesion
From this convergence, Tinubu emerged—not by accident, but by design. “He was not elected into power—he was processed into leadership.”
Over time, these blocs evolved into a more formal structure—the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC). President Bola Ahmed Tinubu did not create the GAC; he strengthened, harmonised, and institutionalised these legacy blocs into a central decision-making body.
“GAC is the institutional memory of Lagos politics.”
THE DOCTRINE OF SUCCESSION IN LAGOS
Lagos has developed a predictable pattern of leadership transition:
Babatunde Fashola — technocratic consolidation
Akinwunmi Ambode — performance with political rupture
Babajide Sanwo-Olu — consensus restoration.
Each transition reinforces a central doctrine: “The primary is the battlefield. The structure is the judge. Consensus is the verdict.” And more fundamentally: “The candidate will always come from within.”
